Friday, April 17, 2020
Sunday, April 12, 2020
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
PARA WALANG HASSLE, KUMUHA NG BUILDING PERMIT
DECEMBER 2018, nagpa-extend ng bahay si Ma'am Cristy sa isang subdivivion dito sa Bacoor, Cavite.
Sinimulan ang construction sa tulong ni Manong Foreman. Wala silang permit.
Hindi naisip ni Ma'am na yun ay magiging problema. Dahil sa isip nya extension lang naman. Magpapa-second floor lang naman siya.
Lumipas ang isang linggo...
Sinita sila ng mabait nilang kapitbahay.
Maingay at makalat daw sila magtrabaho. Hindi makatulog sa hapon ang kanyang aso. At may mga ga-kutsarang buhangin na napupunta sa harap ng bahay nya.
At sinita na rin sila ni Gingging. Si Gingging. Ang secretary ng homeowners association ng subdivision nila.
Asan ang permit nyo Ma'am Cristy? Tanong ni secretary.
Na-stressed si Ma'am.
Mag-aaply na sya. Ok. Wait lang.
Hindi na sya naghintay na masita pa ng Munisipyo. Sigurado sya mas nakaka-stress yun.
Pano kami naka kuha ng permit?
Madali lang naman yan.
Just leave it all to us!
Have a nice day!
Monday, October 22, 2018
Sunday, November 26, 2017
CASA VILLAVICENCIO
WHEN THE VILLAVICENCIO ANCESTRAL HOUSE, built in the 1920s on the
street behind the Casa Tribunal (now the Municipal Building) became too
cramped, being hemmed by other bahay na bato,
the parents of Don Eulalio Villavicencio decided to build a larger house that
had no adjoining neighbors. The new
house stood on the second of five contiguous lots and was three lots away from
its nearest neighbor. Bordered by three
streets, its main entrance was on G. Marella Street. Del Castillo Street that ended at the granite
stairway leading to Caysasay Church, was on the west, while a narrow street
bordered the back of the property.
The house went to Don Eulalio
upon the death of his parents. Although
he already owned the adjoining house one lot away which was connected to his
parent’s abode by a covered bridge, Don Eulalio moved over to the older but
larger dwelling to accommodate his large family.
Don Eulalio and his wife Gliceria
were one of the richest couples in Taal.
They owned large tracts of agricultural land and steamers that plied the
Manila-Batangas-Tayabas coast. Both of
them were staunch nationalists. In January
1892, upon the visit of Juan and Antonio Luna to raise funds for the Propaganda Movement, they donated a sum of
Php18,000 – equivalent to Php6.5 million today.
In gratitude Juan Luna gifted the couple with their portraits, probably
the best he ever painted.
In 1986, Eulalio was arrested for
alleged complicity in the Katipunan. Imprisoned for two years in Fort Santiago, he died
shortly after his release due to the privations suffered during his incarceration.
Because of the death of his
husband at the hands of the Spaniards, Doña Gliceria became an even more rabid
nationalist to the extent of holding clandestine meetings in the house with
revolutionary leaders of Batangas. She
also organized the Batalyon Maluya to fight the Spaniards. With her considerable resources, Doña
Gliceria provided food and arms to the revolutionaries, sometimes even
more personally driving the
carabao-drawn cariton with rifles
hidden under cornstalks supposedly for fodder.
In 1919, Gov.-Gen. Francis B.
Harrison slept in the house as a guest
of Senator Vicente Ilustre, son-in-law of Doña Gliceria, to inaugurate the
electric plant in Taal. It was a
momentous occasion, as Taal was the first town to have electricity in Batangas
province. Incidentally, Vicente Ilustre was Rizal’s model for Isagani in El
Filibusterismo.
A typical three-bayed bahay na bato painted in the
original mint green and yellow ochre, its ground floor walls of adobe blocks
support an upper storey of carved acanthus consoles of molave seemingly support
the pasamano or window sills. This
architectural detail, commonly found in Pangasinan, also appears in contemporary
houses of Taal and Balayan, probably as a result of coastal trade. Ventanilla or “little windows” beneath the
window sill are faced with the elaborate lace-like wrought-iron grillwork
typical of the 1850s. The ogee arches
carved on the doors were inspired those on the facade of Bauan Church, where it
first appeared in Batangas. The
neo-Gothic details of that church, built in the early 1800s, antedated the
1870s Sto. Domingo Church in Intramuros.
The two double doors opening to
the zaguan are unusual for private
houses. The door on the left bay led to
the storage area of the carved and gilded andas
or palanquin of the Nuestra Señora del Rosario.
On her feast day in October, the statue was assembled on the andas which was then decorated with
realistic-looking feligrana or
filigree flowers made of beaten coin silver and illuminated by a score of
candles in handblown and etched virina
or hurricane lamp shades. The zaguan door was then opened so that the
faithful could venerate the ivory image in its glittering golden splendor. The doors of the central bay led to a short
flight of stairs to the meseta or
landing with its door opening to the entresuelo
or mezzanine chamber that had sliding capiz
windows opening to the zaguan and a window on the street side with a
wrought-iron rejas na buntis, so-called because the lower part of the scroll
that formed grille protruded out like the belly of a pregnant woman. From the meseta,
a flight of balayong stairs led to
the wide caida with its panoramic view
of the Balayan Bay.
The hardwood floors of the upper
floor, the elaborately carved and gilded foliated transoms over the double doors carved with ogee panels in the formal
rooms and the walls and ceilings stretched with handpainted canvas are typical of
1850s Taal houses.
In 1919, the house was renovated
for the overnight visit of Gov.-Gen. Francis B. Harrison. In anticipation of the visit, black-and-white
Machuca tiles were laid in the zaguan. The
original painted canvas ceilings of the formal rooms upstairs, which had
probably deteriorated by then, were removed and replaced with stamped tin
imported from the U.S. The walls of the
caida and the sala were re-stretched with new canvas and painted with the then
currently fashionable Art Nouveau motifs by Emilio Alvero. In the master’s bedroom, an adjoining porch
overlooking the central garden with its ornamental pond was built and floored
with Machuca tiles. The lot along Del
Castillo Street was fenced with wrought-iron grilles
and landscaped. A fountain featuring a giant
clam shell spouting water graced the
center of the garden. The exceptionally
large shell was a gift of the Sultan of Sulu, when Vicente Ilustre made a visit
to Jolo as one of the five Filipino members of the Philippine Commission of 1916 –
1919 representing Mindanao and Sulu.
The house, like most dwellings in
Taal, survived the Japanese Occupation relatively unscathed, except for the
loss of the floorboards of the large comedor
or the dining room that ran the whole width of the house. The Villavicencio comedor, the largest in Taal in the 1850a, shows the scale of
entertaining the family indulge in.
Since the family all live in Manila after World War II, the house was not
lived for almost half a century.
Upon partition of the communal
property in 1990, the house went to the heirs of Don Sixto Villavicencio, Don
Eulalio’s son. Edgardo Villavicencio, Don
Sixto’s only son, inherited the house and began restoring it. When the monument of Doña Gliceria Marella de
Villavicencio was erected by the NHI, the garden was raised to street level and
the fountain was buried under the landfill.
The covered bridge, which had become dangerously decrepit due to
non-use, was demolished.
The house is now owned by
Edgardo’s son, Ernesto, who completely restored the house with the help of his
wife, Maris Rosario Benedicto, who has a Master of Architecture degree from
Georgetown University. MARTIN I. TINIO JR.
Thursday, June 30, 2016
VILLAVICENCIO - MARELLA HOUSE
BUILT IN 1870 BY DON EULALIO
VILLAVICENCIO y Marella, the house was presented to Dona Gliceria Marella y
Legaspi on the occasion of their marriage in 1871. Hence, it came to be called “The Wedding Gift
house.”
The couple lived in the house
until the death of Don Eulalio’s parents who left him the adjoining house.
Since it was bigger, the couple moved over to the older house to accommodate their
growing family.
The Wedding Gift House then
served as a guest house. The Luna
brothers stayed there in January 1892 while soliciting contributions throughout
Batangas for the Propaganda Movement.
The Villavicencio couple donated Php18,000 to the cause, a sum
equivalent to Php6.5 million today. In gratitude, Juan Luna gifted the couple with their portraits which were
subsequently framed in beautifully carved and gilded frames by Isabelo Tampinco.
Don Jose Villavicencio, Don
Eulalio’s son, lived in the house with his wife Micaela Atienza until his death
in the 1980s. Since they were childless,
the house was occupied after his death by one of his wards who converted it
into apartments, with an entire family occupying each room. For a while, the house even became a toy
factory.
In the communal partition the
house went to the heirs of Dona Vicenta Villavicencio de Villavicencio,
Gliceria’s eldest daughter. Monserrat
Villavicencio Joven, Vicenta’s eldest child, inherited the house. Her daughter Jocelyn Villavicencio Joven and
her husband, Advinculo Cuay Quiblat, are the present caretakers of the house.
Since the Wedding Gift House was
separated from the main house by a garden, Don Eulalio built a GI-roofed wooden
bridge to connect the azateas of rear terrace of both houses to
facilitate interaction between the two Villavicencio houses. His family could visit thus his parents without
having to go out into the street. Unique
in the country because of its corrugated roof, the bridge stood there until the
1990’s, when its dangerously derelict condition called for its demolition.
A real three-bayed bahay na
bato painted in the original indigo blue and yellow ochre, the walls of the
entire house, including that of the second floor except for the front, are
built of adobe blocks. A wooden volada
or “flying balcony” on the second floor fronting the street is walled with carved
molave panels and wall-to wall
sliding capiz windows topped by multi-lobed exterior transoms, also of capiz. Above the upper window sill are decorative
slats, where Japanese lanterns were hung during processions. Ventanillas or “little windows” beneath
the pasamano or window sill are faced with iron grillwork wrought in the
palmette motif with cast-led ornamentation typical of the 1870s. The neo-Gothic ogee arches carved on the main
double doors replicated those in the older Villavicencio House.
The house is unusual because the
two main double doors to the zaguan are built on either side of a
central bay sporting a large decorative wrought-iron grille with a palmette
motif decorated with cast-lead
ornaments. The left door led to that
part of the zaguan where the carruaje or carriage was kept when not in
use. A door on the left opened to the central garden with a stone stairway at
the end leading up to the azotea. The caballeriza
or stable was located under the azotea. The
left zaguan door also served as a tradesman’s entrance to the large and
spacious concerns of the Villavicencios.
French doors on the street side let light in, while sliding the capiz
windows on either side of the entresuelo ensured good cross-ventilation. The main door or puerta mayor on the
right was for the exclusive use of the family and their friends. It opened an airy zaguan tiled with azulejos,
handpainted decorative tiles imported from Spain that also paved the stairs
leading to the meseta. A door to
the right of the meseta led to the garden that separated the house from
its neighbor.
The Villavicencio-Marella House
has many features. Aside from being the
only one in Taal where the zaguan is floored with azulejos, it is
one of a handful in Batangas, where the formal rooms have French doors opening
to the balconies also floored with azulejo tiles. The turned and carved kalabasa or
squash-shaped balusters so typical of Taal were repainted in the original
primary colors. This is the only house in the country where the rejas na
buntis is overlooking the garden.
The unusual louvered doors with delicately carved transoms of the
bedrooms made for better ventilation and air circulation. They were probably inspired by those in the
newly reconstructed Ayuntamiento building in Intramuros.
When the rooms of the house were
converted to apartments after his death, the house became derelict. Leaks in the roof had rotten some of the
floorboards and many posts had sunk due to wood rot. The dining-room floor sagged dangerously at
one end so that the room could not be used.
By 1990, the house had fallen into disrepair and only half of it was
habitable.
It was the only when the house
was inherited by Monserrat Villavicencio de Joven that her daughter Jocelyn
Villavicencio Joven and her husband Advinculo Cuay Quiblat decided to restore
the house to its former glory. The
sagging and leaking roof was repainted, the posts were jacked up and
reinforced, and the rotten floorboards replaced. With the help of Martin I. Tinio Jr., a very
close friend, the walls of the upper floor were painted in the style of the
1870s, using colors typical of that period.
The garden was landscaped with plants mentioned in the third edition of
F. Blanco’s book Flora de Filipinas that was published in 1883. A gazebo in the 1890s-style was built in the
garden. The process took six years, but
the house is now a delight to the beholder. MARTIN I. TINIO
Full text credit to Martin I. Tinio
Credits to original photo owners
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
PADRE JOSE BURGOS HOUSE
THE PADRE
BURGOS HOUSE MUSEUM IN THE UNESCO World Heritage City of Vigan is located at
the rear of the Capitol of Ilocos Sur and rather close to St. Paul’s Metropolitan
Cathedral. Interestingly, it is adjacent
to the ancient 1657 provincial jail. The
house was constructed in 1788 by peninsulares Don Juan de Gonzales from
the city of Asturias, Spain, and wife Dona Florentina Gascon of Sta. Cataluna
de Baja. The medium size (422 sq. m.
floor area) balay a bato was later left to granddaughter Doña Florencia
Garcia who marred in July 28, 1834, Don Jose Tiburcio Burgos, Tiniente de
Batalion de Lilicias de Ylocos 5 Linea. Their son, Josep Apolonio Burgos y Garcia (Padre Jose Apolonio Burgos), born February 9, 1837, is one of the early
Filipinos who entered priesthood that manifested outstanding academic
excellence.
![]() |
A Cozy Garden |
Padre Jose Burgos studied at the Colegio
de San Juan de Letran and the Universidad de Santo Tomas, received three college
degrees and two master’s degrees, a doctorate, Doctor en Teologia
and Licenciado en Canones on October 29, 1868. He taught Latin in the Universidad de Santo
Tomas. With his extensive education,
Padre Burgos became the parish priest of the Sagrario de Intramuros, and
the second parish priest of the Cathedral.
He held various positions in the Roman Catholic Church as Ecclesiastical
Fiscal at Sagrario de Intramuros, Canonical Magistrate at the Manila
Cathedral and as an Ecclesiastical Court Fiscal.
Despite his
high position, his awareness of the unfair treatment of Filipino priest moved
him to work for reforms for Filipino priests.
He inspired the second novel of Dr. Jose Rizal, El Filibusterismo. Eventually, his liberal ideas led him to be framed
along with two other priests, Fr. Mariano Gomez and Fr. Jacinto Zamora as
mastermind of the Cavite mutiny of January 20, 1872. The three priests collectively known as
“GOMBURZA,” were executed using a winch-type garrote at the Bagumbayan
(Luneta Park) field on February 17, 1872.
![]() |
Inside The Burgos House
|
The type of the
structure of the Padre Jose Burgos house is the earliest form of the balay a
bato in the city of Vigan. This balay
a bato is symmetrical with fine proportions but much smaller and lower in
height than those built at a later time.
The lower
floor, sirok, is presently used as an exhibition area of cultural
artifacts of the early Ilocano and Tingguian communities in the Ilocos region.
This was used for weaving the famous abel, as storage for crops such as
rice, corn and tobacco, jars of fermenting vinegars, and storage of assorted
tools and gears. The thick walls are constructed of bricks plastered with lime
mortar and punctuated at regular intervals with windows, protected with awnings
and grill works.
The main floor
leads to a wide wooden staircase that leads to a caida that segregates
the living quarters from the service area. The upper floor of the main house is occupied
by social areas and sleeping quarters.
The floor is of a variety of Philippines hard wood of assorted
width. The airy, generous social space
is flanked on both sides by bedrooms. A
collection of 19th century paintings by the famous local painter Don
Esteban Villanueva depicting the Basi Revolution of 1807 hangs on the
walls of the living room furnished with Ilocos period furniture. A bedroom contains furniture and interesting
memorabilia of the Fr. Jose Burgos. The
other bedroom is furnished with furniture of the 19the century.
The main house, rectangular on plan, is roofed with
the distinctive cuatro aguas with braced demi-awnings that serve as
secondary protection of the windows from rain and sun. Sliding windows of capiz and wood
protect the generous windows, evenly distributed around the house. The openings above the window transom are
secured with diamond-shaped wood slats. The ventanillas below the windows are
protected with wood barandillas of straightforward design.
Aside from the
main house there is a smaller structure used for cooking, pantry and other
household chores. These two structures
are connected by a lovely azotea protected by railings with the original
clay barandillas. Stairs from the azotea
lead down to the backyard garden with the ubiquitous balon. The service house has a steeper dos aguas
roof that still has the original clay roof tiles. The contrived roof designs create a
seldom-appreciated interesting ensemble of rooflines.
![]() |
The Kitchen |
![]() |
One Creepy Corner |
* All photos downloaded in the internet. Credits to owners. Thanks
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